| Descriptive Attribute | Value(s) |
|---|---|
| Type | Male Votaries with Vegetal Wreaths and Fillets and Sculpted Votive Offerings |
| Title | Male Votary Head with Vegetal Wreath |
| Excavation Unit | 10 |
| Stratigraphic Unit | 1099.14 |
| Context | Found on the surface of the hard-packed floor layer associated with the Hellenistic-Roman phase of the sanctuary (EU 10/SU 1099.140). |
| Current Location | Larnaka District Archaeological Museum, Cyprus |
| Material | Limestone |
| Height (cm) | 20.45 |
| Width (cm) | 17.55 |
| Date | 300 – 250 BCE |
| Thickness (cm) | 11.22 |
| Weight (kg) | 1.837 |
| Description | Under- life-size male head wearing a vegetal wreath, broken at the lower part of the neck and elsewhere. The top and back of the head (especially the proper left half) is poorly preserved, with truncated surfaces and severe weathering (including pock marks). In contrast, the front is well- preserved and finely carved, including the face, wreath, and hair. A row of long, laurel leaves encircles the head, attached to a thin band; the leaves tilt inwards from each direction toward the center, but do not meet, leaving a gap above the forehead. Beneath the wreath, the hair is vigorously modeled in a series of flame-like S- shaped curls. Immediately above the forehead, the curls seem to emanate from the center; on the proper left side (where preservation is best), the curls are rendered as thick, curved masses framing the ear. The face is oval with a wide, vertical forehead. Facial features are sharply defined with eyes carved deep within the cavernous orbitals. The eyes are set horizontally across the face, yet in profile, they slant inward at an oblique angle, breaking the frontal plane of the face. The eyelids are carved in thick relief, framing the prominent, round eyeballs. The nose is strong with rather broad, with flaring nostrils. Lips are straight although slightly askew; they are fleshy and full, well modeled and slightly pursed. The chin is round and prominent (though chipped). No evidence of applied pigment; black splotches of varying degrees of intensity from natural discoloration passim. |
| Commentary | It is perhaps fitting that when this head was first discovered during excavations, buried face-down in its deposit, it was initially identified as a rock (after all, statues are rocks). AAP-AM-1101 has the distinction of being among the most poorly preserved, identifiable heads recovered from Athienou-Malloura, but also one of the most beautifully carved. The subtle sculpting of the face, with soft, deeply set eyes and, full and fleshy, partially open lips, corresponds to trends in Cypriot sculpture in the Hellenistic period, although a refined chronology for this period is notoriously difficult to map. In general, the Hellenistic period at Malloura is represented by a robust assemblage of limestone statuettes of the Cypriot Pan, e.g.,such as AAP-624+697, AAP-AM-1076, AAP-AM-2740 (the largest corpus known from ancient Cyprus);, Artemis (e.g., AAP-AM-4929);, Apollo (Counts and Toumazou 2003: 242–-43);, and female dancing groups (e.g., AAP-AM-5126). A series of Hellenistic heads from Idalion in the British Museum (Connelly 1988: 64-–65, cat. nos. 22, 23, 24; although Senff 1993: 40-–42 suggests a mid-fourth century BCE date for cat. no. 24) offers parallels for the overall features of AAP-AM-1101; all of the heads share broad, straight foreheads, deep-set eyes turned inward at an oblique angle, and slightly open, full lips. One can also appreciate the similarities in hairstyle, with distinct S-pattern (wavy) locks falling to either side and curling to the center; likewise, as Joan Connelly (1988: 65) vividly describes, “at the temples, the locks double under to form S-patterns modelled with higher relief and plasticity.” This same suite of stylistic traits is found on a head said to be from Kythrea (Hermary and Mertens 2015: 123, cat. no. 131 dated to the early second century BCE, but placed by Connelly [1988: 84, 88, cat. no. 32] in her “Golgoi school”) dated to the mid-third century BCE. In particular, the Golgoi head repeats the same S-patterning of hair under the wreath and over the ears, but also shares a certain fleshiness of facial features, in addition to a similar treatment of the carved surface, which might even suggest a common workshop. |
| Bibliography | Herscher 1998: 339, fig. 25 |
| Sketchfab Media URL |
Alternate link to 3D Model: https://sketchfab.com/3d-models/aap-am-1101-4e8ab2b2896f4c1fa6f95a9fa070fc83
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| Descriptive Attribute | Value(s) |
|---|---|
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Consists of
Vocabulary: CIDOC Conceptual Reference Model (CRM) |
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Has type
Vocabulary: CIDOC Conceptual Reference Model (CRM) |
sculpture (visual works)
Vocabulary: Getty Art and Architecture Thesaurus Open Context References: sculpture (visual works) |
Suggested Citation
Derek Counts, Erin Averett, Kevin Garstki. (2020) "AAP-AM-1101 from Europe/Cyprus/Athienou-Malloura". In Visualizing Votive Practice: Exploring Limestone and Terracotta Sculpture from Athienou-Malloura through 3D Models. Derek B. Counts, Erin Walcek Averett, Kevin Garstki, Michael Toumazou (Ed). Released: 2020-07-28. Open Context. <https://opencontext.org/subjects/6fe92b62-bf87-4528-aa9e-ed86eabc2d24> ARK (Archive): https://n2t.net/ark:/28722/k2rv0x61d
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